Product Reviews

After producing seven versions in as many years, Sony Vegas has finally shed its reputation as the eccentric outsider of PC video. It now enjoys a cult following among video enthusiasts, thanks to its swift, easy-to-use interface. Sony doesn't want to limit itself to the enthusiast market, though. Vegas 6 added support for Serial Digital Interface (SDI) for uncompressed digital transfers from professional video equipment. This version continues in the same vein with comprehensive support for XDCAM, Sony's professional video format based around 25GB optical discs.

For those of humbler means, Vegas 7 adds support for DVD camcorders, export to PSP and iPod, and ATRAC audio import and export. It's no coincidence that nearly all these are Sony technologies, but they're welcome additions. It's still not possible to import Dolby Digital audio, even though the software can generate stereo and 5.1 surround Dolby Digital files.

HDV is well on its way to being the leading camera format for enthusiasts, so we're delighted that HDV previews are considerably improved. Vegas 6 struggled to play a single stream of native HDV video smoothly, resorting to an intermediate compression format that was easier to manipulate but created much bigger files. Vegas 7 managed three simultaneous HDV streams in the native m2t format on a fast PC while keeping frame rates reasonably smooth. As before, it's possible to drop the preview resolution for smooth previews of highly complex scenes, but now these options are more comprehensive.

Vegas 7 is lacking in new editing features. An envelope brush feature allows you to draw speed, opacity, volume and pan curves with the mouse, whereupon the software simplifies the strokes into keyframes for easier further edits. Red-eye reduction is available for still images,

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and object snapping benefits from colour-coded visual cues and the ability to snap to objects on other tracks. There are 15 extra presets in the bundled Movie Looks plug-in, which give atmospheric, film-like colours to digital video, but that's about it for new editing features.

More notable is the list of features Vegas lacks compared to Adobe Premiere Pro and Avid Liquid. Both rival products include multi-camera editing, allowing you to line up footage from multiple camera angles and easily switch between them. Both support bezier curves for smooth, precise object motion and effect automation. Vegas's linear paths between keyframes and 3D motion controls result in clumsy movement.

The bundled DVD-authoring program, DVD Architect 4, offers more radical improvements. You can animate buttons and other objects in menus using keyframes, perfect for menus that slide or fade into view. Animations follow curved paths when three or more keyframes are defined; it's frustrating that the same feature isn't available in Vegas. Simple, effective colour-correction tools are available and can also be animated using keyframes. Other new features include the ability to create momentary buttons during video titles, the use of graphics in subtitles and animated slideshows with pan and zoom effects. DVD Architect was already one of the most advanced DVD-authoring programs aimed at non-professionals; the keyframe animation pushes it way beyond the competition. Sadly, end action overrides are missing; these would allow users to change what happens after a video title has played depending on the menu button used to access it.

Vegas 7 isn't packed with must-have features that will convince existing users to spend £154 to upgrade, although the improved HDV preview performance and DVD Architect's new features are exceptions. Even so, Vegas remains our favourite video-editing software, thanks to its efficient interface and attractive price compared with Adobe Premiere Pro. However, Sony needs to overhaul Vegas's object motion capabilities if it is to stay ahead. Until then, we recommend that even ambitious users seriously consider Vegas Movie Studio Platinum. Aside from the maximum track counts of four video and four audio, it lacks little compared with the full version and costs just £50 including VAT from www.amazon.co.uk.